Editorial : Lonely little Earthlings - "WE believe that wherever this meteorite originated, something lived," says the New York Times, quoting scientists involved in discovering that a meteorite contained complex hydrocarbons and the imprint of f

"WE believe that wherever this meteorite originated, something lived," says the New York Times, quoting scientists involved in discovering that a meteorite contained complex hydrocarbons and the imprint of fossil "life forms". Elsewhere, a famous scientist describes the discovery as "the most astounding fact of all scientific study in recent years". And a controversial paper proclaims "the composition of the hydrocarbons . . . provide evidence for biogenic activity".

But it's not meteorite ALH84001 and it's not even 1996. The meteorite is called Orgueil, the year is 1961 and the world is having its first encounter with claims of extraterrestrial life carried aboard meteorites.

If those claims had been substantiated, they would indeed have been "astounding" and shaken up our view of the Universe quite as much as ALH84001 now threatens to do. But, before getting too deep into the implications of it all, perhaps it's worth considering Orgueil as ...

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